Ok, so I was finally able to witness the frost flowers for myself!! Turns out I have a lot to learn about photographing ice so as not to lose so much detail. But this was so fun regardless!! Have you heard of/seen these?! Heres Wikipedias explanation for those interested: The formation of frost flowers is dependent on a freezing weather condition occurring when the ground is not already frozen. The sap in the stem of the plants will expand (water expands when frozen), causing long, thin cracks to form along the length of the stem. Water is then drawn through these cracks via capillary action and freezes upon contact with the air. As more water is drawn through the cracks it pushes the thin ice layers further from the stem, causing a thin petal to form. In the case of woody plants and (living or dead) tree branches the freezing water is squeezed through the pores of the plant forming long thin strings of ice that look uncannily like hair i.e. hair ice or frost beard.
Posted on: Wed, 19 Nov 2014 22:51:49 +0000